A life that is free – reading for 2011

The card drawn from my Thoth deck to guide us in 2011 is the ten of wands, and immediately I’m aware that we have moved from a nine in the 2010 reading to the number ten; completing a cycle. The card has a bright orange background against which are set eight criss-crossed wands, dominated by two much larger black wands standing upright in front of them as if to bar the way.

Given the current political and economic situation, the subtitle of this card “Oppression” seems particularly apt but it is not a card of doom and resignation. Rather, it asks you to take action (for wands are the suit of action) to end situations in which you feel restricted or put upon in any way that restricts your freedom. As a society, perhaps we are being asked to question any oppressive authority under which we find ourselves and indeed we can already see this happening. It’s important to do this in a controlled and calm way though – fiery wands energy allowed to get out of hand can be dangerous and destructive.

This card can also represent a situation in which an individual has taken on an overwhelming amount of work and responsibility…….how does that apply to you? Do you allow yourself enough relaxation time? Do you set yourself impossibly demanding goals to achieve? Well then this year is one for being a little more easy on yourself and perhaps slowing down a bit when it comes to “doing” and exercising a bit more “being” instead. I also see this card as representing our planet too, the earth struggling under the damaging demands being placed on her by ever more greedy consumers. She may well say enough is enough more strongly than ever over the coming months.

This aspect of the ten of wands also suggests people slogging away under their own steam and refusing to delegate or share the burden with others. It is important in 2011 for us to be more aware of working as a community and within teams, so that the tasks and the authority are shared equally. At the same time, you should look to see where you may be preventing someone else from facing up to their own responsibilities by helping them too often or doing too much for them. In the end, although a kind heart may be tempted to do so, it is not helpful to prevent a capable soul from taking control of their own lives by keeping them dependent on you.

It is also possible to hold yourself back, for example by not expressing your true feelings or by not following through on a dream. This year, ask yourself why that is? Are you scared of what people may think of you if you speak your truth? Or what might happen as a result? Do you doubt that you can achieve what you really want to do and so are settling for a situation in which you feel frustrated and unfulfilled? If it’s not appropriate to express your feelings openly to the other people involved (and only you can be the judge of that!) then you can always write them out of your system on a piece of paper which can then be safely destroyed in the most satisfying way (burned, buried, ripped up into tiny pieces). Now is the time to free yourself to do what you really want to do, and also to acknowledge any areas where you’re doing something that isn’t healthy for you, that drains and blocks rather than fills you with energy.

The number ten takes us to the end of a cycle in the Tarot and therefore also back to the beginning to start something new. What needs to end in your life in 2011 so that you can make a new beginning, and express the full wonder of the beautiful being that you are alongside your companions on this life journey?